October 2022. Late afternoon at the Ayous refuge.
The hikers head back down to the valley one by one, the refuge empties, and the plateau falls quiet again. It's my favourite time in the mountains: the hour when there is nothing left to do but wait and watch.
That evening, the air had a rare clarity. No haze, no heat shimmer, nothing between me and the mountain. Facing the refuge, the Pic du Midi d'Ossau stood out with an almost unreal sharpness — every ridge, every gully, every ledge of rock readable to the naked eye, as if it had been brought closer during the day.
I've seen this peak dozens of times. I grew up on the plains of Béarn, and it has always been there, somewhere on the horizon, unmistakable with its twin summit. But I had never seen it this clear.
The sun began to sink, the light to warm. The autumn slopes, already russet, started to glow, then the shadow slowly rose from the valley floors while the summit stayed in the light. A few minutes, barely.
This print is a portrait of the iconic mountain of the Ossau Valley, on one of those evenings when everything seems exactly where it belongs.
Limited edition of 30, numbered and signed
Only 27 prints left
€65
Prints made by my printer
Preview at scale
Approximate scale of the selected print on a living-room wall, with a 1.80 m sofa.
